IVECO's S-Way natural gas trucks on spotlight with EDEKA Minden-Hannover and Shell Bio-LNG's year-old trial run to use agricultural waste products for fuel
As the use of Bio-LNG is gaining traction in Germany, energy company Shell is supplying this sustainable version of liquefied natural gas (LNG) derived from agricultural waste to supermarket cooperative EDEKA Minden-Hannover which operates thousands of stores and several warehouses for its wholesale market.
The supermarket cooperative has dedicated three of its IVECO S-WAY natural gas trucks to the project. Apart from EDEKA, two other customers are also in the pilot run. Each one will run three trucks on the Bio-LNG provided for a year, significantly reducing their carbon emissions during the period.
EDEKA Minden-Hannover has a long-standing commitment to sustainability and is bent on making its goods supply chain as environmentally friendly as possible. This has led the company to address the sustainability of its fleet, which now includes 10 IVECO Stralis NP and 40 IVECO S-WAY natural gas trucks.
“The conversion of our vehicle fleet, which represents the backbone of all of our logistics activities, is a key lever in reducing our carbon footprint,” said Thomas Steinlein, Head of Fleet and Transport Management at EDEKA Minden-Hannover.
“The use of Bio-LNG throughout would of course be a major step forward towards achieving zero emissions. We are therefore delighted to participate in this pilot project to show what this advanced biofuel can contribute to achieving this aim.” However, another important aspect is also the avoidance of nitrogen oxides (NOx) and particulate matter (PM): “Our vehicles operate primarily and frequently in highly polluted inner cities. By using LNG or even Bio-LNG, we are already considerably reducing these pollution values.”
Road to decarbonization
The Bio-LNG used by Shell is produced from agricultural waste. It meets the criteria of the European Union’s revised Renewable Energy Directive (REDII), and is a sustainable circular economy product. Accordingly, EDEKA Minden-Hannover and the other customers will receive statements with regard to the product’s sustainability and carbon benefits.
Head of Shell Germany Fabian Ziegler views this Bio-LNG trial run in Germany as a very important step towards the further expansion of Shell’s Bio-LNG plans for long-distance haulage.
“A Nordsol Bio-LNG plant is scheduled to begin production as soon as this summer, and will feed into our European supply network. After that, we will be progressing in leaps and bounds, as we have submitted a planning permission application in Cologne for a 100,000 tonne plant for the production of Bio-LNG at the Energy and Chemicals Park Rheinland, and hope to break ground this autumn,” he said.
“This would enable us to supply our Shell LNG filling stations in Germany and their customers with Bio-LNG throughout the country as early as 2023, and help to reduce the carbon emissions caused by long-distance haulage by up to a million tons,” he added.
IVECO’s Green Fleet
The IVECO Stralis NP and the IVECO S-WAY natural gas in EDEKA Minden-Hannover’s fleet are equipped with Cursor 13 natural gas engines that comply with Euro VI step D emissions standards, can run on 100% Bio-LNG of the quality available on the market.
No technical modifications or special adaptations are needed to operate on Bio-LNG, and the warranty terms and service intervals are the same as when running on diesel. The two large 54- litre tanks of a 460-hp 4×2, IVECO natural gas truck can hold at least 390 kg of Bio-LNG, providing autonomy of up to 1,600 kilometres without refuelling.
Compared to a diesel truck, they emit considerably less nitrogen oxide and particulate matter emissions, and the CO2 is up to 95 percent lower. This means unrestricted access to low emission zones in city centres, now and in the future.
In addition to their low fuel consumption, the IVECO natural gas tractor units in EDEKA Minden-Hannover’s fleet also impress with their quiet operation, which makes them perfect for areas with noise restrictions and night-time deliveries to its supermarkets. (Photos & Text Source: www.iveco.com)
IVECO celebrates 600,000th Eurocargo built at its iconic Brescia plant
IVECO marked in July the 600,000th Eurocargo produced at its Brescia plant, an iconic production site for the brand that has played a key role in every generation of this vehicle, whose glorious past goes hand-in-hand with constant, forward-looking innovation.
The Brescia plant has always been the heart of production operations for the Eurocargo, thanks to the commitment and passion that its workforce of around 1600 employees dedicate to their jobs.
“It is with great pride that we are celebrating the production of the 600,000th Eurocargo, whose fourth generation has been enjoying a continued success for many years. This milestone vehicle could not be powered by anything else but compressed natural gas (CNG), a tangible reaffirmation of IVECO’s constant commitment to sustainable mobility. Launched in 1991, the Bertone-designed Eurocargo was conceived to be one of the most innovative industrial vehicles on the market – as reflected in its remarkable sales success – with a modular cab platform allowing extensive scope for vehicle customisation without driving up costs. The significant history that lies behind us now guides us on a path of continuous improvement and innovation which, over the coming years, will see our vehicles evolve to become greener than ever,” said Brescia Plant Director Marco Colonna.
A pioneer in sustainability, IVECO is engaged every single day in actively reducing CO2 emissions with its alternative energy vehicles, which offer the ideal solution for the energy transition of the transport industry.
Natural gas benefits both the environment and the economy, as it is the most effective solution available today for the needs of tomorrow. Natural gas-powered Eurocargo models are also extremely quiet, making them ideally suited to all urban missions.
The Brescia-based team works in synergy in every phase of production, from assembly of the chassis to cab bodywork, painting and installation of the transmission, to fitment of the interior trim, all the way to final inspection. The factory also produces special versions for military applications and firefighting.
This flexibility is made possible by teamwork and by the ‘World Class Manufacturing’ integrated production system, which was introduced in 2007 with the goal of achieving zero defects, inefficiencies, waste and accidents. This gives the Eurocargo an edge, not only for its design, but also for its performance.
The origins of the plant date back to 1903, when Roberto Züst founded Fabbrica Automobili, a company that went on to become Officine Meccaniche (OM) in 1928 and was acquired by Fiat in 1968. After initially manufacturing cars (including race cars), OM moved to the agricultural sector and then on to industrial vehicles.
In 1975, OM was among the “founding partners” of the new-born company IVECO. In 1991, the factory was chosen as the site where production of the new Eurocargo would begin. The plant thus became the “home” of this model, and went on to play a key role in plotting the roadmap towards high-tech, sustainable vehicles.
The plant itself is committed to safeguarding the environment and sustainability, and over the next few months, approximately 20,000 m² of solar panels will be installed at the site, cutting CO2 emissions by 1300 tonnes per year.
